God in a Post-Apocalyptic Scene

Fourth Saturday of Easter

First, let me thank Jennifer of Christ Church, Chapel Hill for her very moving response to my distance worshipping questions. Everyone make sure you read it. It's in the comments section. My confession is that in these last weeks I have been a worship watcher much more than a worshipper. I've just been watching and sipping coffee through the service. Tomorrow I'll start worshipping. Many thanks to the several of you who sent comments either to me personally or to the blog for prompting me to worship.

Second, Jennifer implied that the Apostles' Creed is said regularly at Christ, Chapel Hill. It is not said regularly at University, Chapel Hill. Instead we normally say the Canadian Creed (a twentieth century creation of the United Church of Canada). I'll save my rant on this subject for a later blog. For the moment I'll just say I would very strongly support our saying the Apostles' Creed regularly at University.

I tend not to like post-apocalyptic books and movies. By post-apocalyptic I mean stories that occur in a future time during which a grave catastrophe has come close to destroying the world. I've read four post-apocalyptic novels, Nevil Schute's On The Beach from back in the 1950's, which I read as a teenager, Tim LaHaye and Jerry Jenkins Left Behind, Don DeLillo's White Noise, and Cormac McCarthy's The Road.  Only the first did I like. DeLillo and McCarthy are considered to be very fine authors; LaHaye and Jenkins, not. I found all of the latter three to be depressing. I was glad that such post-apocalyptic scenarios would never really happen. 

Then I drove through downtown Chapel Hill last night. Marianne and I had been to see our son, daughter-in-law, and grandchildren's new raised bed garden, which they had all been working diligently on during this shelter in place time. They live on the opposite side of Chapel Hill from us. We did not go in their house and socially distanced outside their house. They were justly proud of their work.

Driving back through Carrboro and Chapel Hill was bizarre. I had not been in Chapel Hill since Wednesday, March 11. Everything was strange. My person was different. I was tethered to my POC (Personal Oxygen Concentrator). I've been on supplemental Oxygen 24-7 since March 13. The weather was strange. Mid-May and the temp was 60 and the wind was howling. While not quite a ghost town, Chapel Hill looked vastly different from a normal Friday night. The few people on the streets were wearing masks. Restaurants and stores were closed. It was spooky. I was glad to get home. Our house was normal, same as before Covid-19, occupied by the same two people and one dog. 

Are we in the apocalyptic scenario. I don't think so, but it sure did feel like it last night. God is with us. I don't understand the relationship, perhaps I should say the theology, of God and the Coronavirus. But I know this. God is with us. Thanks be to God.

Faithfully,

Christian